Amid the cases of the Omicron variant surge in Tamil Nadu, the state has welcomed the New Year with the third wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. The state health department has alarmed the people about the rapid spread and issued fresh guidelines over the hospitalization. In light of the third wave, the state government has reinstated several restrictions and is mulling to enforcing night curfew to curb the spread. 

Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian has on Sunday said that the Delta and Omicron variants of the pandemic have triggered the third wave in the state. He was inspecting a mega vaccination camp in Chennai along with the state health secretary J Radhakrishnan and Chennai Corporation Commissioner Gagandeep Singh Bedi. He also warned that the state would witness a peak of Covid-19 cases, but he didn't mention whether the state will be imposed a lockdown.

Addressing the reporters at the vaccination camp, he said, "We can assume that the third wave has begun and a sudden surge in the cases is expected. Earlier last week, there were about 600 cases and the numbers have increased three times towards the end of the week." The health minister had urged more people to get vaccinated in light of rising cases and stated that at least 83.22 per cent of people have been vaccinated with the first dose and 58.82 per cent of people have been completely vaccinated. 

He said, "In Chennai, 69 per cent of people have taken both the doses and more than 5 lakh people in the city are yet to get the first dose of the vaccine. So far, 8.39 crore doses of vaccines have been administered against Covid-19 in the state. At least 96 lakh people in the state have not taken a single dose and 70 lakh have not taken their second dose." He also had highlighted the fresh guidelines of hospitalization in the state. 

He said as several Omicron cases turn negative within a few days of treatment, the patients can be monitored at home after five days of treatment and a swab test will be taken for the Omicron patients for the third and fifth day and if their results of both the tests turn negative, they will be discharged and advised to be at home quarantine. He further said that in light of growing Covid-19 cases, if a Covid-19 person is asymptomatic and vaccinated with two doses, they can be allowed to isolate at home and will be monitored by a medical team.

If they had shown symptoms, they will be treated at the Covid-19 care centre and if they have serious complications, they will be hospitalized. As the sequel of the surging cases, the health department has taken measures and installed additional beds in the city to accommodate the patients. The health minister said a total of 1,000 beds have been made ready in Chennai and 2,000 more are being planned. The department has put up 100 beds each at Injambakkam and Manjambakkam and it has been proposed to install 800 beds at the Chennai Trade Centre in Nandambakkam. 

Isolation centres are being set up at some colleges hostels in the city. The emergence of the third wave in Tamil Nadu has come at a high time when India is all set to launch the vaccination drive for minors from the age of 15 to 18 years. The health minister said that the vaccination of children aged 15-18 years will begin in the state on Monday - January 3, in collaboration with the state education department. "There are 33.20 lakh eligible children in the state and special camps will be organized to vaccinate them. Of 4 lakh engineering students in the state, 44 per cent of them have been vaccinated with a single dose and 12 per cent of them have been vaccinated completely", Ma Subramanian added. 

Tamil Nadu has reported 120 cases of Omicron variant so far as of Sunday of which 66 have been recovered and discharged. According to the state health department, Tamil Nadu has reported 1,594 fresh Covid-19 cases, 624 discharges, and six deaths on Sunday. In total, the state had recorded 27,51,128 cases so far as of Sunday of which 9,304 are active, 27,05,034 have been discharged, and 36,790 have succumbed to the viral infection.